Wow, I just realized today we are almost at the 21 month
waiting point. 21 months waiting for a
referral to see that sweet little face with big brown eyes. Really it hasn’t seemed like we have been
waiting 21 months. Part of me is happy
that the wait hasn’t been as trying as it was while we were waiting for Daniel,
but on the flip side part of me is sad. I
feel like I had documented every single step in the process with Daniel, this
time around I am lucky to blog every 3rd month!
The wait is starting to get tougher. The movement of referrals seems to have all
but stopped. Average wait time for a
referral now is around 26-30 months. So
in reality we have 5 more months of waiting to go. Unfortunately once we receive that referral
the wait won’t stop there. When we adopted
Daniel 3 years ago the wait was mostly on the front end (in reality, God had
different plans for our journey). Now we will wait for a referral and then wait
even longer for court, then come home and wait for embassy appointments (while
the child is still in Ethiopia). Processes are changing which is adding more
wait time. While I understand the need
for some of the process changes, some are in the best interest of the children,
it is hard. Every time someone asks so
what is going on with the adoption. All
I can say is waiting. Waiting has become
a very normal part of my life. Waiting
helps us prepare, waiting helps us grow closer to God and waiting help us to become
a voice for the fatherless.
I know all this waiting is part of a bigger story. God has plans for this child, plans how he will
use our family while waiting and plans to grow us closer to him. Looking back now on our journey to Daniel,
the waiting was one of my favorite times, though if you would have asked me
while I was waiting I would not have answered that way. During the waiting is when I felt closer to
God than ever. I needed him, without his strength I would not have been able to
wait 11 months to hold my baby. He was
doing big things in that season of waiting.
He worked in our hearts to want to be a bigger voice for the fatherless,
to want to reach out to those who were going through the same things we were,
to be a support for others who struggled with the wait. There are a lot of unknowns, things out of
your control during the adoption process.
If you are anything like me that doesn’t work well. But God is in control, God knows the unknowns
and God will get you through.
So while I am waiting, I will continue to worship God. I
will continue to praise him and I will continue to stand in awe at the works
his is doing in our lives through this journey.
The waiting has helped me see just
how marvelous God can be. I listened to
this song below everyday on my way to work while I was waiting for Daniel. Now I have begun to listen to it again, to
help remind me while I am waiting I will wait in obedience and trust in God’s
plan:
God has this covered.
He has the perfect child picked out just for our family. Daniel prays every night for his baby
brother in Africa. I pray that through
this wait our 4 year old will be able to
learn what it means to wait patiently on God’s plan. I fully believe in God’s plan, his timing is
definitely not always our timing, his timing is not always easy but his timing
is ALWAYS definitely better than anything we could have planned. I just have to remind myself when I get
selfish and want my timing to be his timing, to just breathe and wait. Good
things are coming. This is the scripture that I am clinging too today:
May the God of hope
fill you with joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with
hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. – Romans 15:13
Please pray with us for the movement of referrals, that kids
will be united with their Forever Families.
Most importantly please pray for patience and peace as we wait on God’s
timing for our story.
Adoption is hard.
Adoption is an emotional roller coaster. Adoption is so unbelievably
worth it because Adoption is part of God’s Story!
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